Unusual personal names

The following is a list of people who have received media attention because of their weird name, or are otherwise widely recognized as having names that are unusual. This list includes both names given at birth, and people who have legally changed their name. Please feel free to add any that you know.

People named after something else

Specific

People named after a specific person, organization, fictional character or product.

Armand Hammer, industrialist. Named after the “Arm and Hammer” symbol of the Socialist Labor Party.Austin Healey, English rugby union playerBrooklyn Beckham, son of David and Victoria Beckham, after a New York borough of the same name where he was conceived.Cajus Julius Caesar, member of the German Parliament Deutscher Bundestag.Camera Ashe, daughter of tennis player Arthur Ashe, named after his wife’s profession (photographer)Captain Fantastic Faster Than Superman Spiderman Batman Wolverine Hulk And The Flash Combined, is a British teenager from Glastonbury, Somerset. Charlie Oatway, whose full name isAnthony Philip David Terry Frank Donald Stanley Gerry Gordon Stephen James Oatway, named by his parents after the QPR 1973 first-team squad.Christine Daaé, A Phantom of the Opera fan who had her name legally changed to that of the character.Creedence Clearwater Couto, a Brazilian football player named after an American music band..Eros-Adonis. Name of a Belgian boy.Espn (pronounced Espin). The name of two boys from Michigan and Texas, named for the popular cable sports channel ESPN. However, in Scandinavia, both Esben and Espen are somewhat common names.Harley Quinn Smith, daughter of filmmaker Kevin Smith, named for the Joker’s sidekick Harley Quinn from Batman: The Animated Series.Jesus Christ. Born Jose Luis Espinal, he legally changed his name in December 2005.Jesus Christ Allin, later Kevin Michael Allin, known as GG Allin, named by his religious fatherJohn Portsmouth Football Club Westwood, a fan of the same.Joker Arroyo, a Philippine Senator. The name derives from his father’s fondness of playing cards. He has a brother named Jack, also for the playing card of the same nameKal-El Coppola, son of actor Nicolas Cage, is named for the fictional character Superman.Kenesaw Mountain Landis, American jurist and baseball commissioner, named after Kennesaw Mountain near Atlanta, Georgia.Manchestar Yunayted. A man from the Bulgarian town of Svishtov, who legally renamed himsef after the famous English football team Manchester United.Marenglen. A combination of the names Marx, Engels and Lenin. Common name in Albania, dating back to the communist dictatorship 1944-1992.Metallica. Daughter of Michael and Karolina Tomaro, named after a band.Melscho or Мэлсчо. A combination of the names Marx, Engels, Lenin, Stalin, and Choibalsan. It was the name of a few people during the communist period in Mongolia.Minty Clinch. Film publicist and journalist on The ObserverOleúde José Ribeiro, nicknamed “Capitain” was a Brazilian football player. His first name is a badly misspelled rendition of Hollywood[citation needed]Optimus Prime. A member of the United States National Guard who legally changed his name to one of a Transformers character.Tarquin Fin-tim-lin-bin-whin-bim-lim-bus-stop-F’tang-F’tang-Olé-Biscuitbarrel. British political candidate self-renamed after a Monty Python character. Born John Desmond Lewis.Seseer or Сэсээр. The Mongolian reading of the name СССР (Russian for USSR), which was given during the communist period in Mongolia.Toomer.com, an Israeli programmer.Urhines Kendall Icy Eight Special K, a baby born in St. Francis Health Center in Kansas in 2003.Wrigley Fields, named for the baseball field Wrigley FieldZeppelin Wai Wong, born in San Francisco and named after the Graf Zeppelin which his parents saw overhead when he was born. (According to Herb Caen, Wong says it could be worse: “Suppose it had been the Shenandoah?”)

General

People whose names are nouns or other words not commonly used as a given name.

American McGee, video game designer (Quake, American McGee’s Alice) famous for having an unusual name.Apple Martin, daughter of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin. The Hungarian word for apple, Alma, is a rare female name in Hungary.Baby Hospital, feral child.Bluebell Madonna Halliwell, daughter of writer Sacha Gervasi and Spice Girl Geri HalliwellBumble Ward, a producer. Mention of the name by Kevin Smith in An Evening With Kevin Smith.Breece D’J Pancake, short-lived writer of short fiction. The unusual initial came from a misprint of his first story, which he decided to not correct.Crown Shakur Thomas, a boy who died of malnutrition at the age of six weeks, after being starved by his parents (who were sentenced to life imprisonment).God Shammgod. American basketball player born on April 29, 1976 in New York City who played one season in the NBA.Heaven Rain Charvet daughter of Brooke Burke and David Charvet. Known as Rain CharvetHeavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily Hutchence, daughter of Michael Hutchence and Paula Yates. Legally adopted by Bob Geldof in 2008. Known as Tiger Hutchence to family and friends.Island Shuler. Daughter of former NFL quarterback Heath Shuler.Jellyfish McSaveloyJoybubbles, a phone phreak.Jenji Kohan, creator of television show Weeds.Learned Hand, an American judge and judicial philosopher.Loser Lane – a New York Police Department sergeant, mentioned in the book FreakonomicsMaybe Barnes (or Maybee or Maibe) a male child born 1663 in New Haven, ConnecticutMilton Bradley, an outfielder for the Texas RangersMoxie CrimeFighter Jillette. Daughter of magician Penn Jillette.Peanut Kai Rademacher, son of General Hospital actor, Ingo RademacherPeerless Price, wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills.Pilot Inspektor Riesgraf-Lee. Son of actor and skateboarder Jason Lee and actress Beth Riesgraf.Little Pixie Geldof, daughter of musician and activist Bob Geldof and Paula Yates. Known as Pixie Geldof.Poesy Emmeline Fibonacci Nautilus Taylor Doctorow, daughter of Cory Doctorow and Alice Taylor.Poet Sienna Rose Goldberg, daughter of Soleil Moon Frye and Jason Goldberg.Poppy Montgomery, born Poppy Petal Emma Elizabeth Deveraux Donahue. An Australian-born actress starring in the television series Without a Trace. Her brother is named Jethro Tull, and her sisters are named Rosie Thorn, Daisy Yellow, Lily Belle and Marigold Sun.Ransom Love, former CEO of Caldera.Rocket, Racer, Rogue and Rebel Rodriguez, All children of film director Robert RodriguezThursday October Christian. The son of Fletcher Christian (leader of the mutiny on the Bounty).They. Formerly Andrew Wilson, of Branson, Missouri.Urban Shocker, a Major League Baseball pitcher in the 1910s-20s.Urmas-Armas Ingel (engl. Urmas-Sweet Angel). An eccentric Estonian poet.Wonderful Terrific Monds III was a baseball player in the Atlanta Braves farm system in the early 1990s. WTM I, his grandfather, was given that name because his own parents were so pleased when their son was born. Baseball writer Peter Gammons called it “one of the greatest names” for a ballplayer he has heard.Yahoo Serious, Australian actor known for directing Young Einstein.Yahoo, Mexican boy born in 2007. Named because his parents met in a Yahoo! chat.

Names containing a meaning

Intentional

Names which intentionally contain a phrase.

Amor De Cosmos, the second premier of British Columbia, Canada. His name in Portuguese (and Spanish) actually means “Love Of Cosmos”.Condoleezza Rice, current US Secretary of State. Name is based on a misspelling of the Italian musical term ‘con dolcezza’ which means ‘[to be played] with sweetness’.Espen Thoresen Hværsaagod-Takkskalduha. A Norwegian radio reporter. He first changed his name from Espen Thoresen to Espen Thoresen Hværsaagod (Espen Thoresen You’re welcome). Later he added the name Takkskalduha (Thank you very much).Jello Biafra, born Eric Reed Boucher, changed his name to this because of the two conflicting symbols. Jello, a mass marketed food product with no nutritional value, against Biafra, a failed secessionist state from Nigeria that lead to mass starvation. The name of Lindsay Ann Crouse, daughter of Russel Crouse, was an intentional reference to the playwrighting team of Lindsay and Crouse.Mahershalalhashbaz Ali, American actor. His name is Hebrew for “To speed to the spoil, he hasteneth the prey”. Ali’s name is derived from the Biblical book of Isaiah 8:1-3, where the name is usually given as “Maher-shalal-hash-baz.”Mai Phat Sau Nghin Ruoi. Vietnamese which translates to “Fined Six Thousand Five Hundred” to represent the 6,500 dong, the local currency, that father Mai Xuan Can was forced to pay for ignoring Vietnam’s two-child policy. The boy changed his name to Mai Hoang Long when he turned 18.Masiosare — Spanish for “But if [someone eventually] dared”. It is not a common phrase in Spanish, but a line of the Mexican National Anthem, “Mas si osare un extraño enemigo” (But if an unknown stranger dared), is sometimes heard as “Masiosare, un extraño enemigo” (Masiosare, an unknown enemy). This misunderstanding has led to the frequent use of Masiosare as a proper name.Midnight Chardonnay, registered name of a child in New ZealandMister Thorne — So named because his mother believed that he’d become a high school geometry teacher when he grew up, “and then everyone will know him by that name.”Nardwuar the Human Serviette. Canadian celebrity interviewer and musician from Vancouver, British Columbia.Notwithstanding Griswold a female child born 1759 in Durham, ConnecticutNumber 16 Bus Shelter, registered name of a child in New ZealandRobin Victory in Europe Strasser, American actress born on May 7, 1945, which was officially proclaimed V-E Day.Savior God Scientist Allah is the name of a 16-month old Michigan boy who died after falling from a seventh story window on April 20, 2006Screaming Lord Sutch, born David Edward Sutch, former leader of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party.Spontaniouse Grant, a model hopeful from Montgomery, Alabama, seen on the ninth cycle of the reality TV series America’s Next Top Model. She was named as a result of being born before reaching the hospital, and her mother deeming her birth “spontaneous.”Talula Does The Hula From Hawaii was the given name of a girl in New Zealand. In 2008, at the age of 9, she was made a ward of court in order that her name could be changed.Trout Fishing in America. In 1994, a Santa Barbara teenager named Peter Eastman Jr. legally changed his name to “Trout Fishing in America” after Richard Brautigan’s novella of the same name.Will Power. Australian Champ Car driver.World B. Free. Retired NBA basketball player. His given name was Lloyd B. Free, and later changed his name back to his given name.Wu Suowei (Chinese: 吴所谓), son of Chinese TV host Yang Lan and her husband Wu Zheng, sounds identical to Chinese expression for doesn’t matter or whatever.

Political

Names changed (or given) for political purposes or as a form of protest

america Hoffman, son of revolutionist yippies Abbie and Anita Hoffman. Given the name “america”, with a “small a”, to indicate both patriotism and non-jingoistic intent.Austin Haddock was the name (temporarily) for Austin Mitchell, British MP for Great Grimsby, who changed his name by deed poll in support of his haddock fishermen constituents in October 2002. They were suffering from the effects of an EU fisheries ban enacted over concerns of dwindling North Sea fish stocks.Byron (Low Tax) Looper. Former Tennessee politician Byron Looper changed his middle name to “(Low Tax)” as an election ploy; in 1998 he murdered his electoral opponent, state senator Tommy Burks.CutoutDissection.com – The former Jennifer Thornburg changed her name to the Web address for a PETA-run anti-dissection website to protest the practice of animal dissection.Free Rob Cannabis – Marijuana activist from Glastonbury, UKGoveg.com (pronounced Go Vedge Dot Com). PETA activist Karin Robertson changed her name in 2003 to promote the organization’s vegan website. In 2006 she reverted to her birth name, later saying “I never thought I would be Goveg.com forever. It was just a great way to pique people’s interest.”Kentucky Fried Cruelty.com. A PETA staff member who was known as Chris Garnett before he changed his name in 2006.Legal Tender Coxey – Infant son of Jacob Coxey, leader of Coxey’s Army.Miss Alice. A New Zealand lawyer, formerly known as Rob Moodie, who legally changed his name to protest the Old Boys’ Network that runs the judiciary.Nigel Freemarijuana was for many years the public face of the HEMP Party (Help End Marijuana Prohibition) in Brisbane standing as a candidate in various elections.Seán Dublin Bay Rockall Loftus is an Irish politician who has changed his name several times in order to draw attention to his campaign issues.States Rights Gist, Confederate General during the American Civil WarYorkshire Bank PLC Are Fascist Bastards. Born Michael Howard but changed his name legally after being charged £20 for a £10 overdraft. Having subsequently been forced to close his account, he asked that the remaining balance be paid by cheque made out to his new name.

Double entendres

Names which, when read, can double as a word or phrase. These names’ double meanings are either unintentional, or composed of common given names.

Argelico Fucks, Brazilian footballer.Jaime Lachica Sin a Philippine clergyman, was known as Cardinal Sin because of his status within the Catholic church. Sin was said to play a joke on his title, welcoming visitors to his archbishop’s residence with the greeting “Welcome to the House of Sin”; journalist P.J. O’Rourke, an occasional visitor to the Philippines, has cited such actual newspaper headlines as “Sin requires sobriety”. (He is not to be confused with the term “cardinal sin”).Dick Assman (properly pronounced “assmun”). Canadian service station owner whose name propelled him to international celebrity status in 1995.Dick Pole, baseball playerIma Hogg. Daughter of Governor of Texas James Stephen Hogg. Urban legend contends that she had a sister named Ura Hogg (and occasionally one named Sheysa or Vera as well), but this is false.Jack Ass. Born Robert Craft, he legally changed his name to Jack Ass then brought a plagiarism lawsuit against MTV for their comedy sketch series Jackass.]].Líber Arce – His name sounds like liberarse (Spanish for “to break free”). He was the first person to be killed by the police during the clashes of the late 1960s in Uruguay. (see the Spanish-language article)Lucious Pusey – Linebacker for Eastern Illinois University, legally changed his name to Lucious Seymour..Tu Morrow, daughter of Rob Morrow and his wife Debbon Ayer. Most people have heard of the Norman conquest of England, but did you know that there also was a Norman Conquest of Australia?Dick Trickle, An American race car driver

Captain Beany, legally changed his name from Barry Kirk in 1991, named after his fondness of baked beansDotComGuy. Legally changed his name from Mitch Maddox in 2000 as part of a publicity stunt of spending an entire year in his house, on the Internet.GoldenPalace.com (Pronounced Golden Palace Dot Com). In March 2005, the casino paid Terri Iligan $15,000 after winning an E-Bay Auction to legally change her name.Sunshine Megatron, owner of T-Shirt Hell. Originally named Aaron Landau Schwarz, he established the site http://www.givemeaname.com, inviting people to choose a new name for him and paying $25,000 to the winning submission.Warrior. American professional wrestler, born Brian James “Jim” Hellwig. Legally changed his name to Warrior in 1993 in order to use the name outside of the WWF.Zachary Zzzzzzzzzra, actually named Bill Holland, was a painting contractor who changed his name to Zachary Zzzzzzzzzra as a marketing gimmick so that people could find him “in the back of the phone book”. A 1979 Time article said that he was able to achieve this goal in the San Francisco phone book in eight out of fifteen years, although he had to keep adding Zs to his last name because Zelda Zzzwramp and Vladimir Zzzzzzabakov had become the last listings in the phone book.Tarquin Fin-tim-lin-bin-whin-bim-lim-bus-stop-F’tang-F’tang-Olé-Biscuitbarrel, a 22-year-old student from Hayes in Greater London. Changed his name from John Desmond Lewis by deed poll to contest the Crosby by-election of 1981. The name comes from a character in a sketch from the popular BBC television comedy series Monty Python’s Flying Circus. In the sketch, “Election Night Special”, the character by that name wins in Luton in a general election as the “Silly Party” candidate.KentuckyFriedCruelty.com, An animal activist who changed his name to support the Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign.Chyna. American professional wrestler, born Joanie Laurer. Legally changed her name to Chyna in 2007 in order to use her ring name outside of the WWE.Kamakazi, born Jamie Hildebrandt’, an Australian BMX racing racer who competed in the 2008 Beijing Summer OlympicsChad Ocho Cinco. American football player for Cincinnati of the NFL, born Chad Johnson. Legally changed his surname to “Ocho Cinco” (his nickname) in 2008.

Zappa children and grandchild

Musician Frank Zappa had a penchant for giving his children unusual names. In a segment on The Tonight Show, Jay Leno asked him why he had given his children these names. His answer: “Because I wanted to.” In “The Real Frank Zappa Book” he remarked, “People make a lot of fuss about my kids having such supposedly ‘strange names’. But the fact is that no matter what first names I might have given them, it is the last name that is going to get them in trouble.”

Moon Unit Zappa, his oldest child, did the valspeak on Zappa’s 1982 song Valley Girl. She goes by Moon, insisting that Unit is her middle name. Daughter of Moon Unit: Mathilda Plum Doucette.Dweezil Zappa was born Ian Donald Calvin Euclid Zappa because, the hospital having refused to register the Zappas’ chosen name, the parents reeled off a list of names belonging to Frank Zappa’s then-bandmates. He has since legally changed his name to Dweezil. Dweezil’s daughter is called Zola Frank Zappa.Ahmet Emuukha Rodan Zappa. His third given name comes from the flying Japanese movie monster of the same nameDiva Thin Muffin Pigeen Zappa. So named because, according to her father, she was screaming louder than the other babies in the nursery.

Numbers

Dix-Sept Rosado, whose first name means “seventeen” in French, was one of several brothers with French numerals for names born to a Brazilian family from Mossoró. He later became a politician and there is a town named after him. His brother, Vingt-Un (“twenty-one”) was a writer and journalist.Jennifer 8. Lee She adopted her unusual middle name in her teens, because Chinese custom sees the number 8 as a symbol of prosperity.Jon Blake Cusack 2.0M3 Sweatt, Chief of Staff of the Windows Core Operating System Division (COSD) at MicrosoftOttavio Cinquanta, president of the International Skating UnionPerri 6, Director of Policy and Research at Demos and Professor of Social Policy at Nottingham Trent University.Ten Million. Baseball player from the 1910s.Chad Ocho Cinco, NFL player formerly known as Chad Johnson. He changed his name to a nickname he had previously given himself based on his number 85.

Miscellaneous

Born God Supreme Thompson@ was the name given to a child by a Chinese couple. In Chinese, the symbol @ is pronounced “ai ta” which in Chinese means “love him”. Li Yuming, the deputy chief of the State Language Commission, did not say if officials accepted the name. 4real was the name New Zealand parents attempted to give their child. They were told that numerals were not allowed. The parents are debating this law and, if no name has been registered by July 9, the boy will be legally named “Superman”; friends and family will call him “4real“.Adolf Lu Hitler Marak is an Indian politician.Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116 (pronounced Albin) was a name given to a child by the parents of a Swedish family in May 1996. The name was rejected by a Swedish court. The child’s name was later changed to A (also pronounced Albin), however this too was rejected.Exree Hipp. Former basketball player at University of Maryland. The musician Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol in 1993 as the result of a contractual dispute. He reverted this change in 2000.Prince Octopus Dzanie, Ghanaian boxerParker Posey, American ActressRevilo Oliver, American philologist and Neo-Nazi with a palindromic name.Robert Trebor, American actor with a palindromic name, (Born Robert Schenkman).Sydney Harbour-Bridge, born Ian Howgate; changed his name as a charity stunt. Other names considered were Sydney Opera-House and Phil Harmonic-Orchestra.Teller, born Raymond Joseph Teller, is a magician in the duo Penn & Teller and is one of the few people to possess a United States Passport issued in a single name.

The Bipi people of remote western Manus Island, Papua New Guinea maintain their traditional naming system today. Each child is given a unique name at birth – constructed thus… separate male/female prefixes denoting your birth order to your mother + a significant body of the name – eg. Sapangankilon = Sapa [4th-born male] + ngan-ki-lon [“the sun went down” = he was actually born late one afternoon!]. A wonderful tradition still maintained today!